WORLD >> Asia-Pacific

China supports Pakistan enhancing trade with ASEAN countries

China supports Pakistan enhancing its trade with other ASEAN member countries, Gwadar Pro reported on Sunday quoting Pakistan's ambassador Moin Ul Haq.
Source: Pakistan Observer | 2020/11/30 9:49:30

India's full year GDP to decline by 10 percent: analyst

The Indian economy shrank 7.5 percent year-on-year in the quarter from July to September, the second negative growth in 2020, according to statistics released by the National Statistical Office of Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation of India (MOSPI) on Friday.
Source: Global Times | 2020/11/30 1:05:35

China-ASEAN-Pakistan trade triangle to propel three-way cooperation

On the sidelines of 17th China-ASEAN Expo (CAEXPO), CAEXPO Secretary General Wang Lei met with Pakistani Ambassador Moin ul Haque in Nanning, South China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region to discuss ways to enhance Pakistan's footprint in the premier trade and investment platform.
Source: Global Times | 2020/11/29 19:19:47

Cyprus olive farmer deals with climate challenge

Standing in her olive grove in Cyprus, Elena Sampson sighs at the sight of hundreds of barren trees and vows to tackle climate change after another scorching year.
Source: AFP | 2020/11/29 18:03:40

Delayed Tokyo Olympics to cost additional $1.9b: report

The coronavirus-delayed Tokyo Olympics could cost $1.9 billion more than its original budget of $13 billion, a 15 percent increase, a report said Sunday.
Source: AFP | 2020/11/29 16:58:40

Dead Zone in the Bay of Bengal

A Dead Zone in the Bay of Bengal (BoB), nearly half the size of Bangladesh and at depths 70m and below, has been discovered in recent years by a group of multinational scientists, Bristow et al., (2016). This oxygen-depleted zone, called hypoxia, is the third largest Oxygen Minimum Zone (OMZ) in the world after the OMZs in Eastern Tropical Pacific Ocean and the Arabian Sea. Unlike its neighbouring Arabian Sea, the Bay of Bengal OMZ is somewhat different in nature. It still shows a trace of oxygen at 70m depth and below, ranging from .032-.064 mg/l, albeit way below the Oxygen level (5 mg/l) needed to support aquatic life and other uses. On the other hand, the Arabian Sea has no oxygen, causing devastating effects on its ecosystem and losing its Nitrogen balance unlike any other ocean in the world. The Arabian Sea OMZ contributes 20 per cent of the global ocean denitrification (loss of nitrogen) budget and has been identified as a hotspot of oceanic efflux of N2O, a greenhouse gas. Toxic algal bloom and massive fish kills are rampant in both the flanks of the Arabian Sea (Indian and Omani coasts) caused by the southwesterly summer monsoon winds which trigger upwelling circulations and bring the nutrient-rich and oxygen-depleted bottom ocean water into the shore. Fortunately, the Bay of Bengal OMZ hasn't gone to that level yet, but it is at the tipping point. Evidence shows that the Bay of Bengal OMZ is alarmingly expanding as reflected by its intensification. The trend is set to continue due to global warming, changing river runoff and circulation patterns in the Bay of Bengal. Anthropogenic inputs of nutrients, such as Nitrogen and Phosphorus, and organic Carbon, discharged into the Bay of Bengal by the rivers across the region, have adverse effects on the OMZs. The nutrients inputs to the Bay are increasing due to elevated level of fertilizers being used in modern agricultural practices to meet the demand of foods for 400m people in the region. The potential ramifications of this OMZ are large and it has thus been the subject of multiple international research efforts. However, a conspicuous absence of awareness among Bangladeshi policy makers has become a growing concern for the scientific communities.
Source: The Financial Express | 2020/11/30 10:43:56

Australian PM calls for top army officers to share blame for Afghan war crimes

Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison has called for senior defence force officers to be held accountable for war crimes allegedly committed by soldiers in Afghanistan.
Source: Xinhua | 2020/11/29 10:02:04

Indian propaganda on Jammu and Kashmir terror attack misleads intl community: Pakistan

Pakistan refuted an Indian foreign secretary's briefing to envoys of key nations on so-called attempts to carry out a terror attack in disputed Jammu and Kashmir areas as "completely baseless."
Source: Global Times | 2020/11/26 20:22:33

Political survival

This image released on Thursday shows a general view of the Malaysian Parliament in Kuala Lumpur. Malaysia's Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin secured a key victory on Thursday as parliament approved his administration's 2021 budget, ensuring his political survival amid a health and economic crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Source: AFP | 2020/11/26 17:58:40

S.Korea sex abuse group leader jailed for 40 years

The mastermind of a notorious online sex abuse ring was jailed for 40 years in South Korea on Thursday.
Source: AFP | 2020/11/26 16:53:40

CPEC with vision of connectivity, openness: Pakistani PM

Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan has said that the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) started with a vision of connectivity and openness.
Source: Xinhua | 2020/11/26 13:52:08

Japan's PM Suga under pressure over predecessor's scandal

Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga was grilled by opposition lawmakers on Wednesday over whether he made inaccurate claims in parliament in 2019 about a potential breach of laws on gift-giving by his predecessor.
Source: Reuters | 2020/11/25 19:28:41

World renews Afghanistan aid with cease-fire call and peace conditions

Donors demanded an immediate ceasefire in Afghanistan on Tuesday as they pledged around $12 billion in aid over four years - but tied their money to civil rights being upheld in peace talks with the Taliban.
Source: AFP | 2020/11/25 19:28:40

India's low-caste women raped to keep them 'in their place': report

Lower-caste Dalit women in northern India are targeted for rape by upper caste men who usually escape justice as survivors bow to pressure to drop their cases, researchers found on Wednesday.
Source: Reuters | 2020/11/25 19:13:40

Data reveals Australian universities' heavy reliance on int'l students

More than a quarter of Australian universities' revenue in 2019 came from international students.
Source: Xinhua | 2020/11/25 14:44:51

Better safe than sorry

A worker covers the floor with a tarp at the Borobudur temple in Magelang, Indonesia on Monday, after the Indonesia Geological agency raised the status alert for Mount Merapi to the second highest ahead of a possible eruption. About 500 people have evacuated the area near Mount Merapi. Photo: AFP
Source: AFP | 2020/11/23 17:53:40

Chao Lay welcome pause on tourism, construction

The COVID-19 pandemic has wrought havoc across the world, but for Thailand's "sea gypsies" it has brought welcome respite.
Source: AFP | 2020/11/23 17:48:40

Afghan VP vows to track down Kabul attackers

Afghan Vice President Amrullah Saleh vowed Sunday to track down those responsible for a rocket attack on the capital that killed at least 10 people, even as the Islamic State group claimed to have fired the salvo.
Source: AFP | 2020/11/22 19:13:40